Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1887-09-01
HEAVY TRANSACTIONS.
GARRETT SELLS THE 3. & o. Ex
PRESS FOR THIRTY YEARS,

And Is Reported as About Ready to Turn
Over the Railroad and Telegraph Prop
erty to a Syndicate-Rumors That Jay
Gould Has Finger in the Pie and That
Garrett Is .'short.o
NEW York, Sept 1.-The following Off
cial announcement was made Wednesday by
the president of the United States Express
company:
"The plant, franchise and business of the
Baltimore & Ohio Express has been sold to
the United States Express company for a Pc
riod of thirty years. The sale was made di-
rectly by the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad
company, no other parties being recognized.
The agreement was consummated last week,
and we take possession tomorrow. The ne
gotiations for the sale have been pending
about a month, having begun with President
Garrett before his departure for Europe"
1t is stated on Wall street that the price
paid was 81, 5O0, 900, of which 81, 900. 600 was
Express stock. The president of the United
States Express denies the correctness of the
figures, but declines to state the terms on
which the property was purchased, saying
that the matter is private. No change will
be made in the management or name of the
company.
An idea of the importance of the deal can
be gathered from the statement that the Bal
more & Ohio system runs over 5000 miles of
railway and has these principal stations:
Alaska, 6; Arizona, II; Arkansas, Sc; Cali
fornia, 5; Colorado, Z; District of Columbia,
2; Idaho territory, "; Illinois, 100; Indian
territory :; Iowa, "a; Kansas, Is: Kentucky,
2; Louisiana, 4: Mary land, 66; Michigan, 2;
Missouri, 4; Montana, IL; Nebraska, %;
Ohio, 70. Oregon, 2: Pennsylvania, 40;
Texas, 25; Utah territory, 4; Virginia, 80;
Washington territory, s; West Virginia, So;
Wyoming territory, I.
The United States, before this acquisition,
ran over about Is, 900 miles of road
Speaking OF the transfer, The Post says:
'The rumofs afioat on the street were that
Jay Gould was the real purchaser of the ex-
press company, and that he had practically
completed negotiations which would give
him control of the Baltimore & Ohio tele-
graph company, and was practically in pos
session of all the Baltimore & Ohio property,
including the railroad, telegraph, AMI ex-
press business. From inquiries made among
wellknown brokers, it was learned that there
was every reason to believe that these reports
were well founded"
Besides the above large transaction The
Sun says it is believed that the Baltimore &
Ohio Railroad and Telegraph companies have
passed out of the control of Robert Garrett.
1t is stated that when M. Garrett went
abroad he endeavored to make some finau-
cial arrangements to prosecute his plans and
found himself confronted with combination
of influential banking interests, who deter
mined to stop the competition among the
trunk lines and telegraph companies that had
been depressing stock values. The syndicate,
headed by Drexel, Morgan & Co, which has
brought the New York Central and PennsyI-
vania railroad into harmonious relations, and
which has made it the present policy of the
Reading road to be In accord with the policy
of the Pennsylvania road, controlled the sit
uation. His negotiations with Ives and the
subsequent developments aided materially in
prejudicing foreign banking houses against
further loans. Among other things It is
stated that Mr.. Garrett has lost heavily by
the failure of his attempt to consolidate the
gas companies of Baltimore. and found his
financial resources inadequate to meet the OBJ
legations of his company
The Sun further says that the sale of the
Baltimore q Ohio express is understood to
have been forced by the necessity of meeting
heavy obligations maturing on Monday Of
this week. 1t is now announced, says The
Sun, that Mr.. Garrett has felt himself con-
strained by the ex'geneies of the situation to
place himself in the hands of the syndicate
which negotiated the terms of accommoda-
ton between the Pennsylvania and New York
Central systems, and which controls the
Reading railroad One of the conditions is
stated to be that he shall resign the presi-
dency of the Baltimore & Ohio railroad,
which virtually passes under the control Of
the syndicate and will be managed in har
mony with Pennsy lvania railroad interests
At the same time the way is opened for con
solidation of telegraph interests,